Plain Old Telephone Systems (POTS) represent the traditional analog phone service. Certain types of digital phone systems have been developed. One such digital telephone system is Voice over Internet (VoIP) system that use digital signal transmission techniques to transmit voice communications at least partially over the Internet. VoIP provide such promising benefits as reduced cost and improved functionality for long distance communications that result partially from: reduced Internet voice transmission costs compared to the cost of POTS voice transmission by long distance exchange carriers, increased signal processing and call set-up and operating capability, and enhanced signal encryption and signal processing techniques that result from the digital nature of the VoIP communications. The use of VoIP provides challenges for lawful voice monitoring of subscription telephones communicating over VoIP systems by such groups as the police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation since the VoIP data routes do not always follow a single path.
It would therefore be desirable to configure the VoIP equipment to provide for monitoring of customer premises equipment (CPE) by legal lawful groups.